Two position lever type switch assembly having a handle actuating means with a rear pivotal axis



March 9, 1965 3,172,986

H. KRESS ETAL TWO POSITION LEVER TYPE SWITCH ASSEMBLY HAVING A HANDLE ACTUATING MEANS WITH A REAR PIVOTAL AXIS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 10, 1961 INVENTORS: 650265 14.162555 BY WALTER A.M/V/V Mam}! 1965 G. H. KRESS EI'AL TWO POSITION LEVER TYPE SWITCH ASSEMBLY HAVING A HANDLE ACTUATING MEANS WITH A REAR PIVOTAL AXIS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 10, 1961 INVENTORS: GEORGE H. (2655 BY M1752 A. MGM V United States Patent 3,172,986 TWO POSITION LEVER TYPE SWITCH ASSEMBLY HAVING A HANDLE ACTUATING MEANS WITH A REAR PIVOTAL AXIS George H. Kress, Short Hills, and Walter A. Menu, Hillsdale, N.J., assiguors to General Precision, Inc., a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 10, 1961, Ser. No. 151,465 1 Claim. (Cl. 200-172) This invention relates to switch actuating mechanism, and more especially involves a lever action switch assembly including a front control panel and a sub-panel support.

Lever action switches have many applications and are conventionally employed in conjunction with control panels. However, the principal object of this invention is to provide an organ stop type operating member having a wide-faced lever bar for actuating a conventional lever type switch which would not ordinarily support such a wide lever bar. The general purpose of an actuating mechanism of this kind is to allow a row of lever type switches to be operated or cleared with one pass or motion across the row. Moreover, since the row of switches are adapted to be mounted upon a subpanel in back of the control panel, the entire row of switches may be simultaneously removed for access and servicing.

Another object of this invention is to provide a lever action switch assembly including a control panel lever handle that rotates from a point behind the pivot axis of a conventional lever switch. This construction allows a smaller control panel opening to be used, while also lessening the required angular movement which would be necessary to operate respective switches.

A further object is to provide a lever action switch assembly including a control panel and sub-panel and wherein a plurality of switches may be mounted in banks upon a common support shaft. It will be seen that this assembly reduces the cumulative problems normally existent in separately mounting and aligning the switches, since the entire assembly can be mounted to a sub-panel and aligned relative to a control panel as a unit.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a lever action switch assembly comprising a control panel having front and back sides and an opening therethrough, a sub-panel disposed in back of said control panel, a lever type switch having a pivoting operated member mounted upon a pivot axis, means for mounting said switch to said sub-panel and substantially centering said operating member relative to said control panel opening, a control panel lever handle having a rear recess formed therein, and means for mounting said control panel lever handle from said sub-panel upon a pivot axis, said lever handle projecting through said control panel opening and being accessible from the front side of said control panel, said switch operated member being engaged with the recess of said panel lever handle and actuated by operating pivotal movement thereof.

Other objects of this invention will become apparent in view of the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description.

In the drawings forming a part of this application and in which like parts are identified by like reference numerals throughout the same,

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a preferred form of lever action switch assembly constructed in accordance with the concept of this invention;

FIG. 2 is an end elevation of the lever action switch assembly of FIG. 1, detail portions having been broken away and shown in section;

FIG. 3 is a section taken on lines 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an end elevation of a second embodiment of lever action switch having bumper stop means provided therefor;

FIG. 5 is a section taken on lines 5-5 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is an isometric view showing details of a bumper stop as utilized with the embodiment of FIGS. 4 and 5.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is illustrated a lever action switch assembly comprising a front control panel 10, a sub-panel 11 and a plurality of conventional wafer type lever-operated, two-position switches 12 each having a pivoting operated member 13 mounted upon a common pivot axis 14. More especially, each of the switches is individually operated by a control panel lever handle gen erally indicated by reference number 15 and comprising a pair of spaced support arms 16 and 17 that are interconnected by a wide-faced finger bar 18. Switches 12 are mounted to the sub-panel 11 by means of bolts 19, and the operated members 13 are centered relative to openings 20 and 20a formed in panels 10 and 11.

Since the pivot angle of operation for the conventional switch is usually quite large, it is difiicult, if not impossible, to operate a line of these switches by a single pass of the hand. However, by reducing the angle of operation, although increasing the distance of lever movement, the difficulty in effecting such an operation is minimized. In the lever action switch assembly shown, lever handles 15 are pivotally mounted upon a common axis 21'that is parallel to axis 14 of switches 12. Furthermore, it will be noted that axis 21 is more distance from control panel 10 than the switch axis 14, and for this reason the angle of movement required to operate each switch by means of lever handles 15 will be less than normally required to operate the switches by manual operation of operated members 13.

Lever handles 15 are supported upon a rod 22 which is in turn supported from mounting brackets 23 that are secured to sub-panel 11. Spacer tubes 24 are utilized between the support arms 16 and 17 of each handle and washers 25 are disposed between adjacent arms of the lever handles. This construction provides an assembly that permits simultaneous mounting of an entire line of switches, as in a continuous bank, and each switch, including its respective lever handle 15, is supported from the sub-panel 11.

Sub-panel 11 is mounted to front panel 10 by bolt connections 26 having spacer tubes 27 for accurately positioning and spacing the panels apart. It will be evident that an immediate access to each of the switches is obtained merely by disengaging panels 10 and 11. Thus, while many conventional switch operating mechanisms require individual removal of all switch operating handles, it is unnecessary to disassociate lever handles 15 in order to service any one of the switch mechanisms.

Finger bar 18 may be formed separately from the arms 16 and 17 and connected to each by a plurality of screws 28, as shown in FIG. 2. Also, a preferred type of finger bar construction provides a groove 29 along the rear surface, and an insert member 30 is secured therein by screws 31. Insert member 30 is formed with an opening 32 that is adapted for receiving the projected end of a switch operated member 13, and one or more pins 33 are mounted to the insert, providing means for attaching one end of a tension spring 34, said spring being secured to panel 11 at its other end by a bolt 35. Obviously, the use of a spring means will cause the control handle 15 to be biased toward one of its two positions. The primary function of spring 34 may be either to provide unity in the assembly so as to eliminate looseness and consequent rattles, or, providing that the strength of the spring is suflicient to overpower the friction between parts and the inherent bias upon switch 12, then spring 34 can also function as a return means for the switch. If desired, spring 34 may be dispensed with, thereby omitting its function, as in the embodiment of FIG. 4.

FIG. 4 illustrates a modified form of switch actuating mechanism having bumper stop means for engaging the control panel lever handle 15 as said lever handle is moved into either of two positions. In this assembly we are to assume that the natural bias of a conventional switch mechanism 12 will urge its operated member 13 to either one of its two positions. The bumper stop means, comprising quadrantly positioned cushioned devices 36 will engage the arms 16 and 17 before the operated member 13 is moved into an extreme position. It will be apparent, then, that bumper devices 36 accomplish a similar function as the spring 34 of FIG. 3, since both devices tend to eliminate looseness between parts, a condition which might cause rattles or present an unevenness in appearance of the finger bars 18 from the front side of the control panel.

Inasmuch as the throw" of each conventional switch operated member 13 may vary, it is desirable that each bumper stop means should be individually adjustable. Therefore, bumper devices 36 are individually and adjustably mounted to sub-panel 11 by releasable means comprising a threaded stud 37 and nuts 38. Devices 36 are provided with a vertically elongated slot 39 through which a stud 37 is projected, and each pair of devices, top and bottom, are accurately positioned for simultaneously engaging its respective arm of the lever handle 15.

It is to be understood that the form of the invention herewith shown and described is to be taken as a preferred example thereof and that various changes may be 4 made in the shape, size and arrangement of certain parts without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the attached claim, and each of such changes is contemplated.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: I

A lever action switch assembly comprising a front pane having an opening therethrough; a subpanel positioned adjacent and behind said front panel and having an opening therethrough in alignment with said opening in said front panel; means mounting said subpanel in spaced relation to said front panel; a two-position lever type switch mounted on said subpanel having an operating member extending through said opening in said subpanel and extending toward said front panel; a lever handle engaging said operating member mounted on a single pivot with the axis thereof substantially rearward of said twoposition lever type switch and having a finger bar extending through said opening of said front panel and resilient means associated with said assembly adapted to return said operating member to a particular position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,418,006 3/47 Bangert 200 172 2,492,009 12/49 Sandin et al. 200l66 2,571,837 10/51 Coles 200172 2,648,731 8/53 Despard 200-466 2,712,582 7/55 Peretti 200--172 BERNARD A. GILHEANY, Primary Examiner.

ROBERT K. SHAEFER, Examiner. 

